Trump orders reduced military drills with South Korea

President Donald Trump ordered the Pentagon on Sunday to substantially reduce planned joint military exercises with South Korea, saying the drills are costly and send a hostile signal to North Korea.

Trump said the exercises were too late to cancel but should be scaled back. He also cited South Korea’s refusal to join U.S. efforts to denuclearize Iran and pointed to his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The 11 days of exercises were expected to involve 18,000 South Korean soldiers and joint operations with U.S. forces. The drills were designed to strengthen readiness against North Korean threats.

North Korea had warned Friday of unspecified steps against the United States and South Korea over the drills. The training comes days after North Korea resumed ballistic missile testing activities banned by the United Nations.

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